There’s a point in autumn decorating when the pumpkins begin to outnumber the places you can put down a drink. The mantel is crowded, the coffee table has become a miniature harvest festival, and somebody has to move three decorative gourds just to find the remote.
It doesn’t have to be this way.
Some of the nicest fall rooms barely look decorated at all. A soft blanket where there wasn’t one before. A few branches in an old vase. Maybe a pillow in that particular rusty orange that looks so good next to worn leather.
The room feels different, even if you can’t immediately say why.
Give the sofa a little attention
Before buying anything shaped like a pumpkin, look at your sofa.
It’s probably where you spend most of your evenings, and changing what you touch every day can make a bigger difference than decorating a shelf across the room.
A waffle-weave cotton throw has a lovely rumpled quality. So does a nubby wool blanket, though if your house stays warm well into November, the cotton might get more use. Drape it over an arm rather than arranging it too carefully.
Pillows are another possibility. Olive green, faded rust, oatmeal linen. You don’t need all three. In fact, one or two new covers might be enough.
Have a look in the linen closet first. That plaid blanket you put away in March? Bring it back. A perfectly good throw doesn’t become less attractive because you’ve owned it for five years.
If you’re shopping for pillow covers, check the size of your existing inserts. Arianna Belle’s sizing guide recommends inserts slightly larger than their covers for a fuller, plumper appearance.
A vase of branches. Perhaps a candle. That’s plenty.
A stoneware jug filled with branches has more presence than a dozen tiny decorations scattered around the room.
Put it on the console behind the sofa, or in that empty corner of the bookshelf you’ve never known what to do with. Dried grasses are pretty, too, especially against dark wood.
If you have a yard, you may already have everything you need. Just avoid branches that drop bits all over the furniture. Nobody wants to vacuum their autumn arrangement every afternoon.
An amber glass candle is another nice touch, particularly when the evenings start getting darker. Real flames need some thought, though. The National Fire Protection Association recommends keeping candles at least 12 inches from anything flammable.
With pets or little ones around, a battery-operated candle is often easier.
The coffee table has a job, remember?
It’s tempting to decorate every empty spot. A bare corner of the kitchen counter practically begs for a little bowl of miniature pumpkins.
But empty space is useful. Especially on a Tuesday evening when dinner is late, the mail is everywhere, and someone needs somewhere to put a glass.
Try gathering a candle and the remote on a tray. An old serving plate works just as well. Leave the rest of the table alone.
The same goes for the entryway. Keys, bags, sunglasses, whatever usually ends up there should still have somewhere to land.
There’s something rather luxurious about a room that isn’t filled to the edges.
Buy the blanket you’ll actually use
One final thought about those beautiful, expensive-looking throws.
If it’s going to live on the sofa, someone will spill something on it eventually. Or the dog will decide it’s theirs. Possibly both.
Check the washing instructions before falling in love. A dry-clean-only blanket is less appealing when you know perfectly well it’s never going to the cleaners.
And when the season is over? Fold it away, switch the pillow covers back, and enjoy having a little less stuff around.
Fall decorating should make a room more inviting, not give you another collection of things to dust. Sometimes the whole seasonal makeover is just a good blanket and a branch from the backyard.